Certificate in Soft Skill and IT Skillegyanagar.osou.ac.in/slmfiles/SoftSkill-3.pdf · Certificate in Soft Skill and IT Skill ... Dr. Kameshwari Moorty ... their relationship with

Certificate in Soft Skill and IT Skill

(CSSITS)

CSSITS-1

Soft Skill

Block –

Soft Skill-3

UNIT : 1 Emotional Intelligence Skill

UNIT : 2 Life Skill

UNIT : 3 Presentation on Soft Skill

.

Prof. Jatin Naik - Prof. in English, Utkal University – Member

Prof. Asim Parhi - Prof. in English, Utkal University – Member

Prof. Ashok Mohanty - Communicative English, SOAU – Member

Dr. Ranjita Pati - Associate Professor, BJB College – Member

Dr. Abhilash Nayak - Regional Director, IGNOU – Convener

Course Writer

Dr. Sharmila Subramanian ,

Principal, Astha School of Management

Ms. Debidatta Das Mohapatra,

Asst. Professor, ASTRAL School of Management,

Bhubaneswar.

Ms Sreerupa Rath, Free Lancer, Ex-Asst.Prof.

Regional College of Management, Bhubaneswar Ms Prashansa Das, Academic Consultant, OSOU

Course Editor

Dr. Kameshwari Moorty Regional Director, IGNOU

Panaji, Goa

Dr. Sushanta Moharana Academic Consultant, OSOU

© OSOU, 2017. Soft Skills is made available under a Creative Commons

Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0

http://creativecommons.org/licences/by-sa/4.0

Table of Contents

Unit -I Emotional Intelligence Skills ................................................................ 1

Unit II Life Skills .............................................................................................. 16

Unit III Presentation on Soft Skill ................................................................... 43

Odisha State Open University, Sambalpur Page 1

UNIT- 1: EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE SKILL

Learning objectives: Understand emotional intelligence and its importance in personal and

professional success

Recognize the components of EQ that you need to incorporate to enhance EQ

level

Employ your emotions for better decision making

Show care and build trust to by showing empathy

Learn to motivate others

Structure:

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Importance of Emotional Intelligence

1.3 Components of Emotional Intelligence:

1.3.1 Self-Awareness

1.3.2 Self-Regulation

1.3.3 Motivation:

1.3.4 Empathy

1.3.5 Social Skills

1.4 Advantages of High Emotional Intelligence

1.5 Lets Sum Up

1.6 Key Terms

1.7 Evaluate Your Progress

1.8 Further Readings

1.9 Videos for References


1.1 INTRODUCTION

Our education has always emphasized on academic results, but this is not the only

way to get success in life. Students though performing very well in schools are not

able to handle peer pressure in colleges or workplace, why? Emotions do affect how

and what we learn. Being more aware of our emotions and reaction to it will help us

manage the stress. Once we learn to understand our emotions we will be able to

communicate better.

Emotional Intelligence (EI or sometimes EQ – Emotional Quotient) is a more

modern concept and was only fully developed in the mid-1990s, by Daniel Goleman.

Definition

Emotional intelligence (EI) is the area of cognitive ability that facilitates

interpersonal behaviour.

The term emotional intelligence was popularized in 1995 by psychologist and

behavioural science journalist Dr. Daniel Goleman ―in first book, Emotional

Intelligence‖. Dr. Goleman described emotional intelligence as a person's ability to

manage his feelings so that those feelings are expressed appropriately and

effectively.

Self regulation

Empathy

Social skills

Motivation

Superior performance and decision

making

Self awareness

Source : Google


According to Goleman, emotional intelligence is the largest single predictor of

success in the workplace.

Emotional Intelligence is the measure of an individual‘s abilities to recognize and

manage their emotions, and the emotions of other people, both individually and in

groups.

1.2 IMPORTANCE OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

Importance of EI Emotional Intelligence has been proven to

Increase productivity in workplace

Helps to reduce stress

Moderate the impact of conflict related situation

Promote relationships and understandings

Foster stability and continuity

Heighten self of awareness

It is easy for the people with higher EQ to maintain interpersonal relationships and

fit in to group situations.

People with higher emotional intelligence can manage stress effectively and are less

likely to suffer from depression as they are better at understanding their own

psychological state.

1.3 COMPONENTS OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE:

Daniel Goleman has briefly outlined about five main components of emotional

intelligence. The main identifying characteristics Emotional Intelligence component

are:

1. Self-Awareness

2. Self-regulation

3. Motivation

4. Empathy

5. Social skill

Source : Google


Personal Skills or Competences

Techniques to manage ourselves

Social Skills or Competences

Techniques to manage others

Self-awareness

Emotional awareness

Accurate self-assessment

Self-confidence

Empathy

Understanding others

Developing others

Service orientation

Leveraging diversity

Political awareness

Self-regulation

Self-control

Trustworthiness

Conscientiousness

Adaptability

Innovation

Social Skills

Influence

Communication

Conflict management

Leadership

Change catalyst

Building bonds

Collaboration and cooperation

Team capabilities

Motivation

Achievement drive

Commitment

Initiative

Optimism

1.3.1 Self-Awareness:

Self-awareness is a phenomenon of recognizing and understanding our own moods

and motivations and their effect on others. To achieve this state, we must be able to

monitor our own emotional state and identify our own emotions. This trait shows:

Confidence

Sense of humour (can laugh at self)

Aware of your impression on others (can read the reactions of others to know

how you are perceived)

Self-awareness encompasses:

Emotional awareness

Accurate self-assessment

Self-confidence

For example, anger is usually associated

with being a negative emotion. However, it

can be a completely reasonable and

appropriate emotion in certain circumstances

– emotional intelligence allows us to recognize our anger and understand why this

emotion has occurred.

Effective self-assessment of feelings and emotions will help to improve our

confidence and self-esteem.

1.3.2 Self-regulation

Self-regulation is all about expressing our emotions appropriately. Emotional

intelligence requires makes us able to regulate and manage our emotions. This

Source : Google

https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ps/anger.html


doesn't mean hiding our true feelings and locking our emotions – it simply means

waiting for the right time, place, and avenue to express our emotions.

People having skills of self-regulation are more flexible and adapt themselves well

with the changing circumstances .They are also good at managing conflict and

diffusing tense or difficult situations. Goleman also suggests that those with strong

self-regulation skills are high in conscientiousness. They always try to think of ways

to influence others and takes the responsibility for their own actions. This trait

shows: Conscientious and take personal responsibility for our own work/deeds.

Adaptable (and favourable) to change

When someone is complaining or is rude to us, we should not respond in the

same kind. We should respond in a manner which would not escalate the

situation. (At this point, we will also realize that when someone expresses

anger at us, they‘re not always angry on us, they‘re often just angry and want

to take it out on someone.)

Self-regulation includes:

Self-control

Trustworthiness

Conscientiousness

Adaptability and

Innovation.

Self-Control

Self-control is recognizing and controlling our emotions appropriately rather than

masking or hiding our emotions. This means not making rash decisions or over-

reacting to a situation but remaining calm and rational. It means the ability to make a

balanced decisions based on what is really

important and not just taking decisions how

we feel at that time.

Trustworthiness and Conscientiousness

Trustworthiness is our ability to maintain our

integrity, which means ensuring that what we

do is consistent with our personal values.

People who are trustworthy act ethically. They

build trust through their personal actions, and

the way that their actions are consistent with their organizational values. They are

also prepared to confront unethical actions and take a stand when necessary, even if

that stand will be unpopular.

Conscientiousness is taking responsibility for our own personal performance, and

making sure that it matches up to our ability and our values.

Adaptability:

Source : Google


The ability to adapt, or adaptability, is a great quality to have, if we are an employee

of a company that is going through a lot of changes. We could say that some

chameleons, which change colour to blend into their surroundings, have a high level

of adaptability similarly we should be ever ready for change and adapt ourselves

with the changing environment.

Innovation:

According to Business Dictionary ,Innovation involves deliberate application of

information, imagination and initiative in deriving greater or different values from

resources, and includes all processes by which new ideas are generated and

converted into useful products. Being open to change means knowing our personal

strengths and weaknesses in the context of dynamic situations and using our insight

about our own limitations and capabilities to shape our future actions.

1.3.3 Motivation:

Mr Alison Doyle has described Motivational skills in the workplace can be defined

as actions or strategies that will elicit a desired behaviour or response by a

stakeholder. Motivational tactics will vary according to the style of the motivator,

their relationship with the target of the motivation, and the personality of the

individual to be motivated.

Source: Google

Steps in the Motivational Process

1. Assessing the preferences and personality characteristics of the individual or

group to be motivated.

2. Defining motivational strategies

appropriate for that target.

3. Conveying expectations for

performance to or achieving

desired outcomes from the object

of the motivation. 4. Communicating benefits,

rewards, or sanctions if

expectations are (or are not) met.

5. Providing feedback regarding

progress or lack of progress

towards desired outcomes.

6. Addressing problems or obstacles

that are limiting success.

7. Providing rewards for desired outcomes.

8. Issuing warnings prior to enacting sanctions.

Tips for Improving Motivational Skills

There are many specific techniques that can be used to increase motivation, here are

some of them:

Motivating Others - An important skill for managers is to be able to motivate

other workers. In order to enhance productivity either of the following ways

can be chosen:

Source : Google


Rewards - Giving out rewards for good work can be a great way to

motivate employees to work harder.

Recognition - While money and other financial rewards are nice, some

people are motivated by the chance of being recognized for their skills.

Self-motivation - In addition to motivating others, we can be benefitted by

motivating ourselves.

Goals - Having goals that are being worked toward can be a great way for

a person to motivate themselves to work harder.

Strength - When a person is able to identify things that make them

stronger, it can really help with motivation.

1.3.4 Empathy

Empathy is an important element of Emotional Intelligence, the bond between self

and others, as it is how we as individuals understand what others are experiencing

being in their position. Empathy is, at its simplest, awareness of the feelings and

emotions of other people.

Elements of Empathy

Daniel Goleman identified five key elements

of empathy.

1. Understanding Others

2. Developing Others

3. Having a Service Orientation

4. Leveraging Diversity

5. Political Awareness

1. Understanding Others

It means taking an active interest in

understanding others concerns and sensing

their feeling and perspectives.

2. Developing Others

Developing others means helping others to

their full potential by working and thinking about their needs and concerns. People

with skills in this area usually:

Reward and praise people for their strengths and accomplishments, and provide

constructive feedback designed to focus on how to improve.

Provide mentoring and coaching to help others to develop to their full potential.

Provide stretching assignments that will help their teams to develop.

3. Having a Service Orientation

Today‘s world is customer driven , so organizations, having a service orientation are

more concerned about the customers and put their needs first and look for ways to

improve their satisfaction and loyalty. People who have this approach will ‗go the

extra mile‘ for customers. They will genuinely understand customers‘ needs, and go

Source : Google


out of their way to help meet them. In this way, they can become a ‗trusted advisor‘

to customers, developing a long-term relationship between customer and

organization. This can happen in any industry, and any situation.

Eg: Maruti Suzuki limited: They believe on‖ No More Satisfied Customers but

delighted customers‖

4. Leveraging Diversity

In today‘s competitive world to thrive, we need uniqueness or some feature that is

nowhere present and highly accepted in the world. Leveraging diversity means being

able to create and develop opportunities through different kinds of people,

recognizing and celebrating that we all bring something different to the table.

Leveraging diversity does not mean that it‘s a necessary to treat every person in the

same way, depending on the nature we should tailor the way we interact with others

to fit with their needs and feelings.

People having this skill respect and relate well to everyone, regardless of their

background. As a general rule, they see diversity as an opportunity, understanding

that diverse teams work much better than teams that are more homogeneous.

Therefore, diverse groups perform much better than homogeneous ones.

They try to create an atmosphere that is respectful towards everyone.

5. Political Awareness

Political awareness can help individuals to navigate organisational relationships

effectively, allowing them to achieve where others may previously have failed.

Many people think as ‗political‘ skills as manipulative, but in its best sense,

‗political‘ means sensing and responding to a group‘s emotional undercurrents and

power relationships.

Three Types of Empathy

Psychologists have identified three types of empathy:\

Cognitive empathy is understanding someone‘s thoughts and emotions,

in a very rational, rather than emotional sense.

Emotional empathy is also known as emotional contagion, and is

‗catching‘ someone else‘s feelings, so that you literally feel them too.

Compassionate empathy is understanding someone‘s feelings, and

taking appropriate action to help.


Using Empathy Effectively

To start using empathy more effectively, consider the following:

1. Try to see things from the other person's point of view and put aside your

viewpoint,

This will make us realize that other people most likely aren't being evil, unkind,

stubborn, or unreasonable – they're probably just reacting to the situation with the

knowledge they have.

2. Validate the other person's perspective.

We should accept the fact that opinions of people differ and not necessarily they

will match with our opinion, and the opinions that they hold may have good

reason to hold those opinions. Once you "see" why others believe what they

believe, acknowledge it. Remember: acknowledgement does not always equal

agreement.

3. Examine your attitude.

To have enough room for empathy we need to have an open mind and attitude. We

should have a clear state of mind that whether we are more concerned with getting

our way, winning, or being right? Or, is our priority to find a solution, build

relationships, and accept others? Without an open mind and attitude, you probably

won't have enough room for empathy.

4. Listen.

We need to listen the entire message carefully that the other person is trying to

communicate

Listen with your ears – what is being said, and what tone is being used?

Listen with your eyes – what is the person doing with his or her body while

speaking?

Listen with your instincts – do you sense that the person is not

communicating something important?

Listen with your heart – what do you think the other person feels?

5. Ask what the other person would do.

When in doubt, ask the person to explain his or her position. This is probably the

simplest, and most direct, way to understand the other person. It‘s always better to

know the front persons need.

Here are some more tips for an empathic conversation:

Pay attention, physically and mentally, to what's happening.

Listen carefully, and note the key words and phrases that people use.

Respond encouragingly to the central message.

Be flexible – prepare to change direction as the other person's thoughts and

feelings also change.

Look for cues that you're on target.


1.3.5 Social skills

Being a social animal humans have developed various methods and ways to

communicate the messages, thoughts and feelings with others. Social skills are the

skills used to communicate and interact with each other, both verbally and non-

verbally, through gestures, body language and our personal appearance.

Advantages of social skills

There are distinct advantages of having well developed social skills. They are:

1. To establish more and better relationships

It‘s difficult to advance or achieve goals in life without strong interpersonal

relationships. It‘s important to focus on relationships as it will help us to get a job,

get promoted and make new friends. Well-honed social skills can increase our

happiness and satisfaction and give us a better outlook on life.

By developing your social skills you will become more charismatic, a desirable trait

to become popular or noticed by people. People are more interested in charismatic

people as charismatic people are (or at least appear to be) more interested in them.

2. Better Communication

It‘s almost impossible to have great social skills without good communication skills

and the ability to convey one's thoughts and ideas may be the single most important

skill that anyone can develop in life. To develop one's communication skills the best

way is to relate with people and able to work in large groups naturally.

Source : Google


3. Greater Efficiency

With efficient social skills we can fit ourselves in any social situation or gathering.

It becomes easy to attend a meeting at work or a party in our personal life if we

know at least some of the people who will be there. Some people avoid social

interactions because they do not wish to spend time with individuals who do not

have similar interests and viewpoints.

4. Advancing Career Prospects

Organizations need smart people who have the potential to pull the job regardless of

circumstances. Most organizations are looking for individuals with a particular,

tactical, skill set: the ability to work well in a team and to influence and motivate

people to get things done. Most worthwhile jobs have a 'people component' and

higher positions in an organization often involve a large amount of time spent

interacting with employees, media and colleagues. It is rare that an individual can

remain isolated in their office and still excel in their job.

Getting along and understanding people will help to open many personal and career-

related doors.

We should build the confidence to start a conversation at a work-related conference

and this may lead to a new job offer with a higher salary. A smile and 'hello' in a

social situation may lead to a friendship being formed.

5. Increased Overall Happiness

The ability to build healthy relationships with other people can greatly reduce stress

and anxiety in our life. Levels of anxiety differ among people, like, if we are socially

anxious and desperately want to make friends or are too fearful to do so or are

unsure about how to reach out to others. As a result of these anxious feelings, we

may even be avoiding social situations. Indeed if we improve our social support it

directly links with a better mental health in general, since having good friends can

act as a ―buffer‖ for feelings of anxiety and low mood.

Source : Google

Source : Google


Techniques to improve social skills

Speak the same volume as the people around you.

Start with small talk and find ways to keep it going.

Maintain open body language. Avoid slouching or crossing your arms.

Practice non-verbal communication at home in front of a mirror.

Practice in public places where chatting with strangers is acceptable.

Build up your confidence interacting with others

Develop strong communication skills that would increase the chance for

successful relationships

Note what went well and what didn't in past conversations.

1.4 Advantages of High Emotional Intelligence

Robert Cooper and Ayman Sawaf in their book Executive EQ enumerated following

advantages of having high EQ:

1. A high IQ can help an individual for getting hired in a reputed organization

but with a high EQ a person will get promoted and sustain in an organization.

2. With a high IQ a person can master the daily routine work but with a high

EQ he/she can thrive during times of changes and uncertainty.

3. With a high IQ a person can be efficient professional but with a high EQ the

same can become a great leader.

1.5 Let’s Sum Up

If we keep on practising these Emotional Intelligence skills when we interact with

people we are likely to appear much more caring and approachable, as we increase

our interest in others thoughts, feelings, and experiences. It's a great gift to be willing

and able to see the world from a variety of perspectives – and it's a gift that we can

use all of them, in any situation.

Emotional Intelligence (EQ) is the ability to identify, use, understand, and manage

emotions in an effective and positive way. A high EQ helps individuals to

communicate better, reduce their anxiety and stress, defuse conflicts, improve

relationships, empathize with others, and effectively overcome life‘s challenges.

Our emotional intelligence directly or indirectly affects the quality of our lives

because it influences our behaviour and relationships. Developing EQ can possess a

great impact on our success apart from our personal situations and intelligence that

has influence as well. EQ can profoundly affect our choices by creating options we

may not have otherwise imagined or considered to be possibilities.


1.6 Key Terms:

Emotional Maturity: Emotional maturity refers to your ability to

understand, and manage, your emotions. Emotional maturity enables you to

create the life you desire. A life filled with happiness and fulfilment. You

define success in your own terms, not societies, and you strive to achieve it.

Self-Esteem: self-esteem reflects a person's overall subjective emotional

evaluation of his or her own worth. It is a judgment of oneself as well as an

attitude toward the self.

Conscientiousness: Conscientiousness implies a desire to do a task well.

Conscientious people are efficient and organized as opposed to easy-going

and disorderly. They exhibit a tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully,

and aim for achievement

Source : Google


Stretching Assignments: A ―stretch assignment‖ is a project or task given to

employees which is beyond their current knowledge or skills level in order to

―stretch‖ employees developmentally. The stretch assignment challenges

employees by placing them into uncomfortable situations in order to learn

and grow.

Undercurrents: an underlying feeling or influence, especially one that is

contrary to the prevailing atmosphere and is not expressed openly.

Well-Honed: Well-honed is a past participle adjective meaning "having a

skill or skills that are developed extremely well.

Charismatic : Charisma is the ability to attract, charm, and influence the

people around you. Charisma is often said to be a mysterious ineffable

quality

1.7 Evaluate your progress

A. Multiple choice questions:

1. Emotional intelligence was first discovered by:

a) Dr Golemann

b) Peter Drucker

c) Robert Cooper

d) None of the above

2. Emotional intelligence is important because:

a) Increase workplace productivity

b) Reduce stress

c) Moderate conflict

d) All of the above

3. Which is not a component of Emotional intelligence

a) Self-awareness

b) Self-regulation

c) Self esteem

d) Motivation

4. Which type is not included among type of empathy?

a) Cognitive empathy

b) Contingent empathy

c) Emotional empathy

d) Compassionate empathy

5. What are the advantages of social skills?

a) More and Better Relationships

b) Better Communication

c) Increased Overall Happiness

d) All of the above


B. Check your answers

1:a /2:d / 3:c / 4:b / 5:d

C. Answer in your own words

1. What do you understand by emotional intelligence. Explain its relevance in

professional and personal life?

2. What are the various component of Emotional Intelligence? How can we

incorporate them for our betterment?

3. What do you understand by empathy? What are the various types of

empathy? How can we use empathy skills effectively?

4. What are social skills? Explain the various techniques to improve social

skills?

5. What is the need to motivate others? What is the process of motivation and

how can we improve our motivational skills.

1.8 References and Further Readings

Emotional Intelligence at work – the professional guide by Dalip Singh

Emotional Intelligence – THE VIVEKANANDA WAY

Emotional Intelligence – By Daniel Golemann

http://www.readysetpresent.com/images/products/powerpointcontent/PDFpre

views/EmotionalIntelligenceModernSampleFinal.pdf

http://inspirebusinesssolutions.com/blog/5-main-components-of-emotional-

intelligence

https://www.slideshare.net/LuxyKL/emotional-intelligence-48787348

https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/empathy.html

https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/social-skills.html

https://www.thebalance.com/motivational-skills-with-examples-2059691

https://www.thebalance.com/motivational-skills-with-examples-2059691

1.9 Videos for references

Emotional Intelligence - By Sandeep Maheshwari

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNQf5YFL2Ns

Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6MRsGwyMuQ

Emotional Intelligence - Managing Emotions With BK Shivani - Awakening

With Brahma Kumaris https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GZnf6PHyw0

Emotional Intelligence Brendon Gouveia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weuLejJdUu0

Emotional Intelligence - Understanding EQ with Daniel Goleman - Animated

Book Review https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26N1XjfFwrE


UNIT 2: LIFE SKILLS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

To understand the importance life skills

Develop team working skills

Incorporate critical and creative thinking skills

Enhance leadership skills

Thoroughly understand problem solving skills

Structure

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Significance of Life Skills

2.3 Types of Life Skills

2.4 Team Working Skills

2.5 Critical Thinking Skills

2.6 Creative Thinking Skills

2.7 Leadership Skills

2.8 Problem Solving Skills

2.9 Lets sum up

2.10 Key Terms

2.11 Evaluate your Progress

2.12 Further Readings

2.13 Video links for references

2.1 INTRODUCTION

Stockpiling knowledge is no longer sufficient for life long employability, but in the

midst of ongoing change we don‘t know what skills will lead to success. It‘s very

difficult to predict how the future economic scenario will look like and the possible

changes in social and employability. Acquiring knowledge is necessary but no

longer sufficient for success. When knowledge is exploding we need certain extra

skills like self-directed learning to become successful.

Life skills have been defined as ―the abilities for adaptive and positive behavior that

enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday

life‖ (WHO). Life skills are the abilities and capabilities that we develop within

ourselves to face various obstacles and challenges in our life. Life skills emerge in us


but we don‘t pay much attention to promote them. Researchers have call this as

executive skill as of brain that pulls our social, emotional and mental capacities to

reach out our goals. Life skills are set of skills or things which we do that makes us

better, more viable, more productive than the people around us. These skills form the

base of our education that improve our soft skills that we need to flourish in future.

2.2 SIGNIFICANCE OF LIFE SKILLS

In the present world we live in a dynamic environment which is changing

continuously, to meet this changes in our everyday life we need life skills

essentially. Over past few years a tremendous change is seen in global world with

the transformation in technology and these are all impacting on education, the

workplace and our home life. We may have exposure to many new jobs in due

course of life, along with pressures and stress, in order to handle or cope with it

students need to develop or get trained in new life skills such as the ability to be

flexible and deal with stress and frustration.

Let‘s see the impact of life skills on:

Impact on individual :

Life skills can help us in variety of ways like:

It helps to find creative ways of thinking and problem solving

It helps to build confidence in communication and enhance team work

capacity thereby enhancing group collaboration and cooperation

It helps to recognize the result of their actions and train them to take the

responsibility of whatever they do rather than blaming others.

It helps in developing a greater sense of self-awareness and appreciation for

others

It teaches us to choose the best solution for a problem among various

alternatives available thereby strengthening our decision making and problem

solving skills.

Impact on employment

Employability today demands smart work i.e. a combination of soft skills and hard

skills. Employers prefer candidates who has the potential to drive their job in such a

way that should provide a competitive advantage to the organization. For this the

employees should develop life skills such as:

Time and people management that results in reduction in pressure or stress

and completion of task on time.

Develop The Ability To Self-Manage, Solve Problems And Understand The

Business Environment

Work Well As A Part Of Team

Adapt According To Different Roles And Flexible Working Environments

Lead The Team by efficient leadership skills.

Impact on society


The more we develop life skills individually, the more these affect and benefit the

world in which we live:

Through life skills we acquire cultural awareness and citizenship that makes

international cooperation easier

If people develop life skills they become more creative and imaginative that

in turn helps to build a more tolerant society respecting diversity.

Developing negotiation skills, the ability to network and empathise can help

to build resolutions rather than resentments

2.3 TYPES OF LIFE SKILLS

There are many soft skills. Some of the important life skills identified through

Delphi Method by WHO:

Decision making

Problem solving

Creative thinking/lateral thinking

Critical thinking/perspicacity

Effective communication

Interpersonal relationships

Self-awareness/mindfulness

Assertiveness

Empathy

Equanimity

Coping with stress, trauma and loss

Resilience

Most of the life skills we have already discussed in our previous units. In this unit

we shall discuss following skills:

1. Team working skills

2. Creative thinking skills

3. Leadership skills

4. Problem solving skills

2.4 TEAM WORKING SKILLS

Definition

According to Business Dictionary team work is defined as the process of working

collaboratively with a group of people in order to achieve a goal.

It was once suggested that a small group of people who are committed and

thoughtful can change the world.

Teamwork is often a crucial part of a business, as it is often necessary for colleagues

to work well together, trying their best in any circumstance. Teamwork means that

people will try to cooperate, using their individual skills and providing constructive

feedback, despite any personal conflict between individuals.


Team working skills are basically the skills for work, the only thing important thing

here is that the purpose of the team should be clearly defined which has to be kept in

mind all the way through team activity. An individual in a team has to work think for

the team rather than themselves

Team work is something that we have already been involved with like during sports

in college or an annual fest or in a family or community function

Importance of team working skills

It‘s said about a TEAM Together everyone can achieve more

Team working skills has a great importance for the development of an individual and

an organization as well:

An effective team shares the work load especially in a project where team

working skills are important in meeting deadlines, as it will be a collective

responsibility for a team to get the job done.

Good team working skills provides peer support i.e. we have the support of

team members when needed in the form of motivation and encouragement.

With these skills we get an exposure of active learning environment, with

variety of learning from the expertise of the team members. Occasionally

when we need a better understanding about a topic we can be helped by the

members.

With these skills you can become more interactive as you can interact with

people while and between doing work that makes you more social and

communicative.

Team working skills in turn helps in gaining various personal and

interpersonal skills such as time management, communication, leadership

and organizational skills.

Finally team working skills are an essential requirement for employment. We need to

provide the prospective employers an evidence that we have these skills while

applying a job. Working in a team clearly outweighs any problem encountered that

may be difficult to get solved individually.

BELBIN’S TEAM ROLES

Belbin have identified nine different behaviours (or contributions) that individuals

display in the work place. We call these the nine Belbin Team Roles. They are:

Shaper – They drives work forward and get things done, has a clear idea of

the desired direction of travel.

Implementer – They also gets things done, looking for ways to turn talk into

action and generate practical activity.

Completer-Finisher – They focuses on completing tasks, and tidying up all

the loose ends.

Coordinator – They manage the group dynamics, often in a leadership role.

Team Worker – They helps the team to work effectively by supporting

personal relationships.


Resource Investigator – They gathers external resources and information to

help the team.

Plant – They generates ideas and creative solutions, not all of them practical.

Monitor-Evaluator – They are good at critically assessing ideas and

proposals, and at making decisions.

Specialist – They brings in-depth knowledge of a key area to the team.

This doesn't mean that you need to have nine people in each of your teams! Most

people will have two or three Team Roles that they are most comfortable with, a few

others that they can manage to cover if they need to, and finally the rest that they

prefer not to adopt at all. Successful teams need to have the right mix of people

within them, so that all nine of the Team Role behaviours are represented.

Key team working skills:

To work effectively in a team we need to acquire all the soft skills and interpersonal

skills .lets discuss some of the basic skills that are mandatory to learn for working in

a team:

Communication Skills

We need to be good at verbal communication, listening, and questioning. We have to

put our efforts to ensure that the group communicates well, we need to help to make

sure that there are no misunderstandings or unexpressed difficulties between team

members.

Establish and build good rapport

It‘s essential to make the team coherent and always maintain a harmony in the team.

For this we need to build a good rapport and sound relationship with the team

members.

Persuasion and Influencing Skills :

To come to a common or shared decision we should have the ability of persuading

and influencing the members such that understands the objectives and consensus can

be achieved, for example, several members may need to be persuaded of the merits

of a particular course of action.

Facilitation Skills

Facilitation is the process where a facilitator guide the group members in meeting to

share ideas, opinions, experiences, and expertise in order to achieve a common goal

and agreeable action plan. Good facilitation skills are not only crucial for managing

workshops but also vital in team-working, although they are often wrongly seen as

crucial only for managing workshops.

Feedback Skills

The most important task in a team work to give feedback and receive feedback. For

proper planning and to keep the group process running effectively, it‘s necessary that

we should be able to give clear and effective feedback to others. You need to take

care that you do not get irritated and angry with the way that others are behaving.


Apart from it you also need to ensure to receive feedback gracefully, and then act on

it calmly.

Conflict resolution:

From organizations through to personal relationships interpersonal conflict is a fact

of life and can arise in almost any sphere. Learning to resolve it effectively, is

important for everyone as it decreases stress level. For this the essential skills

required are Negotiation, Active Listening, assertiveness, Emotional intelligence,

Communication.

Dos and Don’ts of team working skills

Do:

You should always share credit owned with the team members for successes

A clear picture of team goals and objectives should be documented.

Active participation and contribution is required

Always speak up in meetings

Determine each team member's strengths and weaknesses

Take and see disagreements as learning opportunities

Educate team members who have inaccurate perceptions

Encourage your thinking that you should go 'out of the box' for seeking

solutions

Always stick to commitment and earn trust by keeping your word,

When behaviour is unacceptable address the behaviour, not the person,

Don't:

Never criticize others' shortcomings

Never procrastinate about doing your share of the work

Never hesitate to ask for help when you need it

Never be jealous of others achievement ,take it as a team spirit

Never allow any person to dominate the team

Never devote time to activities outside the scope of team's charter

Never make excuses – apologize for errors and move on

Never form opinions based on stereotypes, always ensure for facts.

Never spread rumours or gossip

Never lose sight of team's mission/objectives

2.5 CRITICAL & CREATIVE THINKING SKILLS

CRITICAL THINKING

Definition: According to Wikipedia critical thinking is defined as ―"the process of

actively and skilfully conceptualizing, applying, analysing, synthesizing, and

evaluating information to reach an answer or conclusion"

Critical thinking is a type of thinking which is reflected while making a decision or

solving a problem. Critical thinking is based on logic and careful reasoning which is


guided by reasoned evidence. It defines problems, identifies competing arguments,

uses relevant data, raises key questions, and uses information effectively to make

reasoned judgments. The word ―critical‖ derives from the Greek work kritikos ,

which means ―judge.‖ Critical thinking involves rationality and convergent thinking.

Characteristics of critical thinking or thinkers are:

They are always concerned for becoming and remaining well informed about

the problem.

They notice everything with sharp perceptions and are alert to opportunities

and establish careful connections.

They enquire and are intellectually curious about large number of issues.

They always ask probing and productive questions and make meaningful

distinctions.

They carefully analyse, interpret and evaluate evidence through informed and

sound judgements.

They exhibit self-confidence and show fair and open mindedness

They show flexibility in considering alternatives and opinions

They are always willing to reconsider and revise views where honest

reflection suggests that change is warranted

Critical thinkers constantly challenge their thinking and the thinking of

others. They exhibit a stance of deliberate skepticism, refusing to accept

assertions without evidence to support them.

Importance of Critical thinking skills

These skills help to understand the experiences and views of others and enhance

your ability to work with others

It is a valuable skill from student life to an employee from solving

problems in school till facing real world situations.

In present world where knowledge is driven by information and

technology, one has to develop ability to deal with changes smartly and

effectively. Good critical thinking promotes our thinking and make us

able to analyse and integrate diverse sources of knowledge in solving

problems.

Our expression of ideas and comprehension abilities are improved by

critical thinking that results in systematic and clear presentation of our

ideas and language.

By critical thinking one can develop new ideas and evaluate its reliability

and specificity, thus promoting creativity.

Self-awareness, self-regulation and self-evaluation is essential to

structure our life and achieve our goals and objectives, critical thinking

helps in self-reflection so that we can justify our values and decisions.

We live in a scientific and democratic society were every scientific theory

has to be supported with scientific experimentation and confirmations

that require critical reasoning. Similarly our democratic society need

citizens who can think critically and provide informed judgements for

better governance.


Critical thinking enhances our problem solving skills as it helps us to go

out of the box and search solution that solves the problem accurately with

defined precision.

Prospective employers give more weightage to people who learn quickly

and can solve problems, think creatively, gather and analyse information

meaningfully.

In order to get promotions in an organization generating effective ideas

and making important decisions is the key factor which can be achieved

by critical thinking.

CRITICAL THINKING PROCESS

Critical thinking is a six steps process that guides us to think logically so as to

widen the perspectives ,rooting personal biases,accept findings and consider

reasonable possiblities.The steps are:

1. Knowledge

2. Understanding/Comprehension

3. Application

4. Analysis

5. Evaluation

6. Creation/taking action

Source : Google


Knowledge:

In this step problem is identified and the need for solving the problem is

specified.For this one should ask productive questions to understand the depth of the

problem.

Comprehension/understanding

After identifying the problem the facts about the situation has to be comprehended

and understood in depth by collecting relevant data using various research methods.

Application

All the relevant ideas and theories concerned to the core problem are applied to real

situations to determine the best way to move forward. Linkages are build between

the information collected and resources available.

Analyze:

After establishing the relationship between the problem and various information

available.The situation is analyzed regarding pros and cons and the challenges that

may be faced while solving the problem.after analyzing all the causes , The priorities

are set for the main causes and determine how they can be addressed in the

solution.the common statistical tool user here is cause and effect diagram.

Synthesis/Evaluation:

Once all the solution have been derived each one is thenevaluated for their strenghts

and weakness using SWOT analysis.And the best solution is selected for

implementation.

Take action/Creation

The selected solution is ready for implementation and can be put in an action.

2.6 CREATIVE THINKING SKILLS

Definition

According to Wikipedia ―Creativity is a phenomenon whereby something new and

somehow valuable is formed. The created item may be intangible (such as an idea, a

scientific theory, a musical composition, or a joke) or a physical object (such as an

invention, a literary work, or a painting).‖

Creative thinking is imaginative thinking directed toward innovation. It is based on

questions that ask ―what if,‖ ―why‖ and ―why not‖; ―how‖ and ―how else‖? Creative

thinking is grounded in the consideration of alternatives, possibilities, other ways of

imagining and doing things. The key to creative thinking is imagination.

Innovations start with creative thinking, the connection of previously connected

thoughts. And it became creativity when we bring those thoughts out in some way

and with this creativity produces new value


Importance of creative thinking skills

Creative thinking is important because:

In 21st century society is advancing at a remarkable pace. We need to equip

ourselves with the ability to adapt in spite of holding back.

We can achieve great success by facing new challenges and responding to

them with a new way of thinking and self-confidence.

Ability to apply innovative thinking has become a characteristic of successful

people today.

Creative thinking complements our analytical, rational and logical powers

thus utilizing the mental capacity of an individual to full extent.

Creative thinkers view mistakes as opportunities to learn; they welcome

challenges and difficulties; they are willing to follow their intuition and

instincts.

When something can‘t be solved by a practical approach, creative thinking

can help you see around a problem positively and get to where you need to

be by looking at it from another angle.

Characteristics of creative thinking skills

Seven characteristics of critical thinking widely accepted are:

1. Receptivity - Be open to new ideas, welcome and learn from new

experiences.

2. Attentiveness - Every experience is potentially valuable.

3. Conviction - Tenaciously pursue an independent path.

4. Curiosity - Research unusual topics; analyse unfamiliar systems.

5. Wide Range of Interests - With more components, the number of

combinations increase.

6. Seeking Connections - See the similarity between disparate parts.

7. Complexity - Combine the irrational with the intuitive.

Methods and Techniques of creative thinking skills

Techniques are like tools in a workshop with different parts of the creative process,

used to create something. Creative thinking techniques trains you to how to get out

of box and get creative ideas, that helps you to go through and boost you to become

a person you want to be. The important creative thinking techniques are:

1. Mind mapping

2. Lateral thinking

3. Brainstorming

4. Six thinking hats

5. Random input

6. Reversal

7. Scamp


Mind mapping:

Mind mapping is a visual way to capture your thoughts and ideas so that you can

easily plan things and remember things and also take notes. It‘s a brain friendly

technique to record thoughts and the ways by which we think more effectively.

Mind mapping was invented by Sir Tony Buzan, it is used all over the world

basically used in studying business situation. They are easy to create and understand

where there is a central image or subject and curvilinear branches radiate out of the

image to create ideas about the subject. Steps in mind mapping

I. Central image : You need to draw the subject for the mind map in the

center of the page suppose if we have to do mind mapping for being

healthy, so health will be the subject in the middle of the page.

II. Main branch : Next step is to organize your ideas about the subject, what

are the key factors affecting the subject for e.g. in the above fig we need

to what are the factors affecting health, so here the main branches will be

stress ,exercise, sleep, Diet, and help.

III. Detailed branch: Now it‘s time to add more details to the key factors by

identifying the details that stimulates the key factors. For eg if we take

sleep, identification of factors affecting sleep and branching the tips to

overcome insomnia.

Always use images with lot of colours and key words as it attracts the brain more

and goes in to long term memory.

Lateral Thinking

Lateral thinking, a concept developed by creativity expert Edward de Bono in 1967.

He introduced the concept of lateral thinking in his book Lateral Thinking:

Creativity Step by Step in 1970. Lateral thinking seeks to problem solve and develop

ideas by using an unorthodox or apparently illogical method of thinking.

Source : Google


The brain forms pattern for routine things, so whenever a new idea sets in our brain

it has to follow the routine ideas. But lateral thinking enables us to restructure our

patterns, it helps us to open our minds to think outside the square and this facilitates

creativity. Lateral thinking means moving across the track, where brain make

asymmetric ideas to find a solution that is easy to use

Lateral thinking tools

Idea generation tools: this tool is to generate ideas for the subject by moving

away from the conventional thinking patterns and start to think creatively by

going beyond or challenging assumptions

Focus tools: this tool is to focus the subject and dig in to different areas

where ideas can be to explored and further scrutinized.

Harvest tools. : Harvest tools are designed to evaluate the values derived

from each idea.

Treatment tools: these tools are used to combine all the ideas accumulated

and fit them in to the problem until the desired result is achieved.

Brainstorming

IT was developed by Sir Alex Osborn

Brainstorming is a group technique by which efforts are made to find a conclusion

for a specific problem by gathering a list of ideas spontaneously contributed by its

member. This technique generate as many ideas as possible, suspending evaluation

until all the ideas have been suggested.

Guidelines for brain storming

No criticism is allowed during brainstorming.

Quantity is important. The more ideas the better.

Wildness is good. Crazy ideas are welcome.

Combining other ideas and taking another person‘s ideas.

Process of brainstorming:

The leader or another member

introduces the problem,

completely explains the problem,

if required the members plan for a

field visit also.

The group meets in a half circle

and starts to storm the problem.

All ideas are welcome, simple ideas, crazy ideas…

No group member, including the leader, is allowed to criticize any idea.

Everyone is encouraged to use other group members‘ ideas to come up with

yet another idea.

All ideas are recorded by a note taker (can be the leader or another person) at

a place where all group members can see the ideas. on a flip chart or

whiteboard

Source : Google


A brainstorming session lasts between 30 minutes and 1 hour. The list of

ideas is copied and distributed to all group members

Ideas can be evaluated in a second meeting. Each attendant gets a packet of 5

sticky dots and places the dots on the ideas he/she likes the most

The best idea is chosen using multivoting, decision matrix, and PMI

technique

Six thinking Hats

In 1995 Edward de bono evolved the concept ―six thinking hats‖. This is a powerful

technique of looking at decisions from a number of different perspective, the premise

of this method is that the human brain looks in to a problem from number of distinct

way.

Six thinking hats technique is used to make complex and quality decisions. This is

widely used in meetings, which mold every member to think in a parallel way,

instead of arguments. It‘s a very practical and simple way for any sort of discussions

to augment a parallel thinking and arriving to a decision in a constructive way. It

saves huge amount of time, and a quick way of exploring the subject.

Each thinking that represents a different style of thinking which is described in the

table below:

Source : Google


Random input

Random input technique is taking unrelated item for designing or redesigning and

forcing those concepts together to come up with something new. Developed by

Edward de Bono in 1968, this technique was later published in the book Serious

Creativity. Random input is a thinking technique that allows thinkers to come up

with new patterns and associations to solve problems. With this technique, you can

use random words, pictures or even sounds to help you think of new connections.

Some of the new thoughts might not directly solve the problem but rather allow the

mind to venture in new directions.

One example of a way to do this is to simply open up the dictionary to a random

page and point to a random word. Then use this word as a springboard for new

thoughts and ideas.

Reversal

This technique is mainly used for improving a product or service. It forces the brain

to look at a problem from another, or even opposite, direction, a way that it is not

accustomed to.

For example, let us assume that you are trying to figure out how to improve

customer service. In order to apply the reversal thinking technique, you would ask,

―How would I reduce customer satisfaction?‖ You would then consider the times

you were in situations involving customer service that made you experience negative

emotions. Some possible ideas could be not answering the phone when a customer

calls, not returning a customer‘s call, having customer service employees that have

no product knowledge, having rude staff or giving the wrong advice to customers.

This list could probably go on for some time, but the point is that you then can use

these ideas in reverse order to solve your original problem. To continue this

example, to improve customer service, you would make sure that calls are always

returned and answered and that the staff is cordial and understands the products or

services you sell.

Scamper

Scamper was developed by Bob Eberle, an educational administrator, who actually

developed the questions of brainstorming into the SCAMPER mnemonic.

SCAMPER is a thinking technique that allows for the generation of ideas by

considering ways that might improve and change existing products or services. The

mnemonic SCAMPER stands for Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, and Put to

another use, Eliminate, and Reverse.

Scamper is a check list creativity technique for solving a problem which constitutes

of seven elements.they are:

Substitute : Remove some part of the accepted situation, thing, or concept and

replace it with something else.that suits the situation.


Combine : Join, affiliate, or force together two or more elements of your subject

matter and consider ways that such a combination might move you toward a

solution,desired.

Adapt : Arrange or rearrange the problem and change some part of your problem so

that it works where it did not before.

Modify : Maximise or minimise many of the attribute considered of the thing you're

working on and change them, arbitrarily, if necessary. Attributes include: size,

shape, other dimensions, texture, color, attitude, position, history, and so on.

Purpose /Put to another use : Modify the intention of the subject. Think about why it

exists, what it is used for, what it's supposed to do. Challenge all of these

assumptions and suggest new and unusual purposes.

Eliminate : Arbitrarily remove any or all elements of your subject, simplify, reduce

to core functionality

Reverse(replace/rearrange): Replace or rearrange the direction or orientation. Turn it

upside-down, inside-out, or make it go backwards, against the direction it was

intended to go or be used.

Source : Google


2.7 LEADERSHIP SKILL

Definition Leadership always doesn‘t mean titles, position, seniority,

personal attributes or management, leadership is the potential of tapping

unlimited human potential and turning it in to desired results. Leadership is

lifting a person‘s performance to a higher standard, the building of a

personality beyond his normal limitations.

Some definitions are:

―Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality. ―By Warren Bennis

―A leader is a dealer in hope‖ By Napoleon Bonaparte

―Leadership is lifting a person‘s position to high sights, the raising of a person‘s

performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality beyond its normal

limitations‖ By Peter Drucker

―Leadership is influence….nothing more nothing less – By John Maxwell

Leadership skills: Leadership skills are an essential component in positioning

executives to make thoughtful decisions about their organization's mission and goals,

and properly allocate resources to achieve those directives. Valuable leadership skills

include the ability to delegate, inspire and communicate effectively.

Importance of leadership skill:

Leadership skills are important because:

Leadership skills does makes a difference between a manager and a

leader, where the latter possess both the qualities but a manager may

not possess leadership qualities.

Leadership training for young people is an important factor for

economic growth and development of the society.

Leadership training is a significant step towards creating an

enterprising generation and growth of entrepreneurs

Strategic leadership skills can be a unique point for graduates in

securing a job position, therefore, it is crucial to teach at least the

basic leadership skills to young people.

It is critical for young leaders to learn how to analyze their own

strengths and weaknesses, as well as grow confident and motivated to

reach ambitious goals.

Leadership is an important factor for making an organization

successful. Leadership transforms potential into reality.

Leaders are a key human resource in any organization. Better leaders

develop better employees and the two together develop better

products.


Leadership skills improve your ability to be proactive. Leaders do not

just ‗plan to do‘, they actually ‗do‘. The ‗do-ers‘ are the ones whom

are identified as being the most reliable and productive.

Leadership skills develop innovativeness and improve your ability to

find new ways of doing things in an organization.

Leadership skills develop forward-thinking and as a result leaders are

more prepared to take initiatives and deliver solutions to problems

that arise.

Various leadership skills for an effective leader (from organization

and management behaviour by Subbarao)

The skills of the effective leaders include:

1. Personal Skills Personal skills include developing managing stress and solving

problems creatively.

Developing Self-Awareness include:

Determining values and priorities

Identifying cognitive style –

Assessing attitude towards change awareness,

Managing Stress includes:

Coping with stressors

Managing time

Delegating

Solving Problems Creatively includes:

Using the rational approach

Using the creative approach

Fostering innovation in others

Interpersonal Skills include:

Gaining power and influence, communicating, Motivating and conflict management.

Gaining Power and Influence include:

Gaining power

Exercising influence

Empowering others

Communicating includes: -

Informing and listening

Coaching and Counselling

Motivating includes:

Diagnosing poor performance

Creating a motivating environment –

Rewarding accomplishments


Conflict Management includes:

Diagnosing the conflicts Finding causes

Developing and selecting the best strategies

Resolving the confrontations.

Leadership styles

Leadership style is the manner and approach of providing direction, implementing

plans, and motivating people. The most appropriate leadership style depends on the

function of the leader, the followers and the situation. Different types of leadership

styles exist in work environments. The culture and goals of an organization

determine which leadership style fits the firm best.

From Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill, to Martin Luther King and Steve

Jobs, there can be as many ways to lead people as there are leaders. You need to

understand different styles so as to develop your own approach to leadership, and

become a more effective leader as a result. Different leadership styles are:

Authoritarian or autocratic - Autocratic leaders make decisions

without consulting their team members, even if their input would be

useful, the leader tells his or her employees what to do and how to do

it, without getting their advice. This can be used when you need to

make quick decisions, and team input or agreement is not required,

for a successful outcome. This type may result in demoralization

among subordinates and increase rate of absentees.

Participative or democratic - participative leadership values the

input of team members and peers, but the responsibility of making

the final decision rests with the participative leader. The most unique

feature of this leadership is that communication is active upward and

downward. Participative leadership boosts employee morale because

employees make contributions to the decision-making process.it is

the most preferred style of leadership as it entails fairness,

competence, creativity, courage, intelligence and honesty. This is not

always an effective style to use, though, when you need to make a

quick decision.

Delegative or laissez-fair (free-rein) - Laissez-faire leadership gives

authority to employees. Highly experienced and trained employees

requiring little supervision fall under the laissez-faire leadership

style. Leaders provide support with resources and advice if needed,

but otherwise they don't get involved. This is not a style to use so that

you can blame others when things go wrong, rather this is a style to

be used when you fully trust and have confidence in the people

below you.This style has to be used wisely.


Transformational: Transformational leadership is all about

initiating change in organizations, groups, oneself and others. They

motivate people with a shared vision of the future, and they

communicate well. Transformational leaders inspire their team

members because they expect the best from everyone, and they hold

themselves accountable. Statistically, transformational leadership

tends to have more committed and satisfied followers.

Transactional: transactional leadership is a style of leadership in

which leaders promote compliance by followers through both

rewards and punishments. If a subordinate does what is desired, a

reward will follow, and if he does not go as per the wishes of the

leader, a punishment will follow. Here, the exchange between leader

and follower takes place to achieve routine performance goals.

Ways to develop Leadership skills

No one is a born leader—everyone can develop leadership skills and everyone can

benefit from using them.

1. Get yourself a mentor: Find someone who has the skills that you

admire, and take winning tips from them for how to step up. A good

mentor should be able to challenge you to higher goals, introduce

you to different way of thinking, and provide you with constructive

feedback on your development

2. Seek for a specific skill: Take a career advice from a coaching set

who will be able to give a specific set of tool to impart your

leadership skills and who will be able to measure your performance

in a more structured and direct manner.

3. Take the initiative and be proactive: You should be able to

demonstrate that you are able to take the initiative and go at par and

beyond the duties of the current role. The more responsibility you

take on the more you can prove your ambitions and problem solving

skills .For e.g.: in a project deliver the presentations and show

commitment and ask for more responsibility.

4. Influence outcomes: Apart from technical knowledge you should

built the skills of influencing others. This can be done by

demonstrating your knowledge and expertise that in turn build trust.

Some were this can be achieved by contributing to publications and

online discussions or by organizing workshops or by showcasing

your achievements.

By Active listening and asking productive questions in a discussion people around

you get influenced that helps to better collaborate with your colleagues and selling

your ideas. The more you listen the more likely it is that the person will listen to you.

5. Understand how people feel: As a leader you need to know the

people whom you work with and understand what motivates them.


Every personnel is different so getting a clear picture of what drives

professional in your field is essential. Before delegating task you

should be aware of the ambitions and strengths of your team

members. To succeed as a leader you need to adjust your leadership

styles and techniques in order to get the most attribute team.

6. Learn transparency: Always give and take honest feedback even it

may lead to criticism. To step up the leadership role you need to

understand how to be transparent and constructive with your

criticism.it is difficult to share challenging feedback but it is an

essential leadership skill.

7. Know your leadership styles: It is important to learn how to adapt

different leadership styles to different scenario in order to get the best

out of your team like you can either be participative and involve the

opinions of others or can be authoritative and dictate your owned

policies and procedures or be free rein and be liberal giving

employees freedom to work. Identify the leadership style which suits

the best to the situation.

8. The most important thing if get an opportunity to work with a great

leader take and observe every tip from how they lead and learn from

them.

2.8 PROBLEM SOLVING SKILL

Meaning :

According to business dictionary the process of working through details of a

problem to reach a solution. Problem solving may include mathematical or

systematic operations and can be a gauge of an individual's critical thinking skills.

Creativity can be actually tested when we have the ability to solve problem. Problem

solving is a skill in any job as the world of job is actually about making decisions

and solving problem. Problem solving is a multi-step procedure used to overcome

obstacles and achieve goals. It means a problem is a gap between actual and desired,

and the barrier to this are obstacles, that has to be overcome in order to achieve our

goals.

Problem solving skills are the skills or ability to solve problem and make good

decisions that lead to success or growth.

Importance of problem solving skills:

Problem solving skills are not only a math skill, but also a skill used in every subject

and in all aspects of life

Problems are a part of life so it‘s important to know, to how to solve

problems and/or cope with them. Life brings challenges to us and we must

learn to overcome.

Problem solving skills help us to make decisions independently; to be

personally responsible for our tasks.


It produces self-confidence and builds self-esteem.

It develops creativity, persistence, a proactive mindset and prepares us for

real life in the real world.

It creates knowledge about things that aren‘t going right, in relationships and

surroundings. It helps us to advocate for ourselves.

It teaches us how to collaborate and work together, especially with people

that are different than themselves.

We may come across to different type of problems in the due course of our

career, where we require problem solving skills to overcome obstacles and

reach out to solution, thereby differentiating ourselves from others.

The skill of problem solving :

Problem solving requires three distinct types of mental skill:- analytical, practical

and creative

Analytical skill: Analytical or logical thinking is a convergent process. It

provides a logical framework for problem solving by gathering information

and helps to select the best alternative from those available by narrowing

down the range of possibilities. It includes skills such as ordering,

comparing, contrasting, evaluating and selecting. Analytical thinking often

predominates in solving closed problems, where the many possible causes

have to be identified and analysed to find the real cause.

Practical skills: These skills are used to solve the routine problems in

everyday life. Typically involving contingent things that are not easy to know

or control as, they draw on problem solvers extensive knowledge and

experience, solving similar problems where they find the solution intuitively.

Practical problem solving doesn‘t involve a high degree of critical thinking

but it relies on the ability to set your emotional things aside and accept things

diligently.

Creative skill: Creative thinking is a divergent process, using the imagination

to create a large range of ideas for solutions. It requires us to look beyond the

obvious, creating ideas which may, at first, seem unrealistic or have no

logical connection with the problem. There is a large element of creative

thinking in solving open problems like:

Fluency - producing many ideas

Flexibility - producing a broad range of ideas.

Originality - producing uncommon ideas

Elaboration - developing ideas.

Effective problem solving requires a controlled mixture of analytical and creative

thinking.

Steps of problem solving

A standard problem-solving removes time lost in debate and ensure that problems do

not recur and a continuous improvement is implemented. This can be achieved

through Deming‘s four step PDCA cycle of problem solving.

The four phases are:


1. Plan: identify and analyse the problem or opportunity, develop hypotheses

about what the issues may be, and decide which one to test.

2. Do: test the potential solution, ideally on a small scale, and measure the

results.

3. Check/Study: study the result, measure effectiveness, and decide whether the

hypothesis is supported or not.

4. Act: if the solution was successful, implement it.

The PDCA Cycle is further extended to Kaizen eight step process of problem

solving. This includes

1. Define problem

2. Analyse the process

3. Determine the Root Cause

4. Develop Strategies

5. Implement Strategies

6. Evaluate Results

7. Change the Process

8. Standardize and Share Success

Define problem

A problem can be defined in one of three ways. The first being, anything that is a

deviation from the standard. The second could be the gap between the actual

condition and the desired condition. With the third being an unfilled customer need.

In order to best clarify the problem, you have to see the problem with your own eyes.

This gives you the details and hands-on experience that will allow you to move

forward in the process.

Analyze the process

Sound decisions are based on proper collection, classification and analysis of facts

and figures. There are three principles relating to the analysis and classification as

explained below:

1. The futurity of the problem. This means to what length of time, the decision

will be applicable to a course of action.

2. The impact of problem on other functions and areas of the business.

3. The qualitative considerations which come into the picture.

This is also a good time to study and analyze the different inputs and outputs of the

process so that you can effectively prioritize your efforts. It is much more effective

to manage and solve a bunch of micro-problems one at a time, rather than try and

tackle a big problem with no direction.


Determine the Root Cause

This is a vital step when problem solving, because it will help you identify the actual

factors that caused the issue in the first place. More often than not, there are multiple

root causes to determine. Make sure you are considering all potential root causes and

addressing them properly. A proper root cause analysis, again involves you actually

going to the cause itself instead of simply relying on reports.

Identify strategy and select best:

You should set targets that are challenging, but within limits and don‘t put a strain

on the organization that would hinder the improvement process. Use the information

to develop the strategies needed to remove the root causes. Once you‘ve developed

your strategies, select the best that solves the problem most efficiently.

Implement strategies

Communication is extremely important in step six. You‘ll want to seek ideas from

the team and continue to work back through the PDCA cycle to ensure nothing is

being missed along the way. Consider implementing one strategies at a time to

monitor the effectiveness of each.

You will certainly make mistakes in throughout your problem solving processes, but

your persistence is key, especially in step six.

Evaluate results

Evaluate the results. This can be done by 3 ways:-

a. Follow up: Follow up is indispensable so as to modify and improve upon the

strategies at the earliest opportunity.

b. Monitoring: According to Peter Drucker, the monitoring system should be

such that the manager can go and look for himself for first-hand

information ,or check through information systems

c. Feedback: a mechanism should be built which would give periodic reports

on the success of the implementation and also serve as an instrument of

―preventive maintenance‖,

Change the process

If the results are in favour change the process and execute the new process. It is time

to set the new processes as the new standard within the organization and share them

throughout the organization. Address any possible unresolved issues or troubles you

have along the way. Ignoring unresolved issues will only lead to more problems

down the road.

Commit to improve continuously:

Start the problem solving process over again and continue to work towards

perfection.


Ways of improving Problem Solving Skills:

In present world people having problem solving skills are in high demand.

Prospective employers search for talent those are trained in problem solving.

Following are the tips to improve problem solving skills:

Practice solving mysteries, logic puzzles or games: To build up your brain

muscle and start thinking differently, practice some logic puzzles and

computer games.

Use mind maps to help visualize the problem: Make a Mind Map by

drawing your problem as the central idea. Add ―main branches‖ consisting of

all the reasons for the problem. Use ―sub-branches‖ to explore further details.

A visual snapshot of a problem and its possible solutions, can help focus the

mind, stimulate the brain, increase the capacity for creative thinking, and

generate more ideas for solutions. Get a good night’s sleep: it‘s well said

that a sound sleep creates a sound mind so night sleep i.e., Rapid Eye

Movement (REM) sleep directly enhances creative processing in the brain.

REM sleep helps ―stimulate associative networks, allowing the brain to make

new and useful associations between unrelated ideas‖ and are ―not due to

selective memory enhancements‖ such as memory consolidation, which

occurs when awake.

Source : Google


Read books about problem solving: Books like Sherlock Holmes and

Conan Doyle's stories of the great detective reveal some basic principles of

problem solving which can apply to everyday life.

Solve simpler problems first - Begin with simpler, but still real, problems

rather than taking on the more complex type of real world problems. Never

mind solving your work-life balance problem first. Start with solving this

problem: How can I keep from losing my phone every time I get ready to go

somewhere?

Adopt a problem-solving mindset. Observe your surroundings and pay

attention to what you can do to improve your living and way of working.

Whatever you're doing ask whether there is a better way: easier, more

efficient, and more effective.

Be methodical about problem solving – Don‘t immediately rush to a

solution. Think about it, understand the mechanics of the situation, look at

the problem from multiple perspectives - and then the solution usually

appears.

Participate in Yoga: Yoga and meditation can increase the concentrating

and remembering capacity of an individual. The powerful combination of

body awareness, breathing, and meditation that is required during yoga

practice has been shown to significantly raise cognitive test scores.

2.9 Let’s Sum Up

Developing life skills always worth it as it is all about improving the quality of our

life, It is these kinds of skills that can set us apart from others, making us attractive

to potential employers and course leaders and helping us to lead the kind of life we

really want to lead.

In order to function effectively in all aspects of our lives we need life skills. The goal

of skills for life is to help ensure that we can live full and fulfilling our dreams. This

is about life-long learning and thriving in the environments such as work, home,

with friends, at leisure and so on that we find ourselves in.

2.10 Key Terms

1. Stockpiling knowledge: a gradually accumulated reserve of knowledge that is

gained in due course of time.

2. Equanimity; the technique of being calm and composed even in difficult

situation,

3. Resilience: it is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties and toughness.

A situation of coming back even more strongly when you are knocked down.

4. Skepticism : It is an attitude of doubt or a disposition to uncertainty either in

general or a particular object.

5. Decision Matrix : A decision matrix is a list of values in rows and columns that

allows an analyst to systematically identify, analyse and rate the performance of

relationships between sets of values and information


6. PMI Technique: The PMI technique is a thinking technique to find the Plus

Points, Minus Points and Interesting Points about the issue before you form an

opinion.

7. Counselling: It is the activity of the counsellor or a professional who counsels

people especially on personal problems and difficulties.

8. Proactive: Creating or controlling a situation rather than just responding to it

after it has happened.

9. Strategies: A plan of action designed to achieve a long term or overall aim.

10. Information Systems: An information system is an organized system for the

collection, organization, storage and communication of information.

2.11 EVALUATE YOUR PROGRESS

1. Multiple choice questions

Q.1 Which among this is not a life skill?

a) Team work

b) Problem solving

c) Management

d) Leadership

Q.2 With an effective team:

a) Work load is shared

b) Avail peer support

c) Become more interactive

d) All of the above

Q.3 Which is the first step of critical thinking process:

a) Evaluation

b) Analysis

c) Understanding

d) creating

Q.4 Which is not a technique of creative thinking process?

a) Mind mapping

b) Lateral thinking

c) Scamper

d) Authoritarian

Q.5 What does ―P‖ indicates in SCAMPER?

a) Put to another use

b) Programme

c) Possibility


Q.6 Which type of leadership completely delegates authority to employees?


a) Laissez fair

b) Participative

c) Transformational

d) Transactional

Q.7 PDCA cycle is also known as:

a) Kaizen cycle

b) Deming cycle

c) Process cycle


Check your answers: 1-c / 2-d / 3-c / 4-d /5-a/6-a/7-b

2. Answer in your own words:

a. What do you mean by life skill? Identify various life skills essential for

growth and success.

b. Why are team working skills important? Explain Belbin‘s team role.

c. Explain in detail Critical thinking process?

d. What are the characteristics of creative thinking? Explain mind mapping and

six thinking hats

e. Define Leadership. Why leadership skills are important?

f. What do you mean by problem solving? Explain steps of problem solving?

2.12 References and Further readings:

Life skills 101 : A practical guide to leaving home and living on your own by

Tina Pestalozzi

Life skills for success by Alka Wadkar

Modern Life skills : How to deal with the demands and challenges of

Everyday by Liggy Webb

http://www.itseducation.asia/the-skills-of-problem-solving.htm

http://www.kaizen-news.com/eight-steps-practical-problem-solving/

https://cmoe.com/10-ways-to-improve-problem-solving-skills/

https://www.quora.com/How-can-one-improve-his-problem-solving-abilities

2.13 Video links for references

Developing Life Skills https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iarg6WzJA1U

Life Skills - B.K. Shivani & Dr. Girish Patel Episode – 01

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0JHAJW6Zd0

Life skills by Barceley https://www.youtube.com/user/YourLifeSkills


Presentation

on

Soft Skill

SOFT SKILLS

SOFT SKILLS GET LITTLE RESPECT BUT WILL

MAKE OR BREAK YOUR CAREER

-PEGGY KLAUS

DEFINITION (WIKIPEDIA/ENCYLOPEDIA)

• Soft skills refer to the cluster of personality traits, social grace, facility with

language, personal habits, friendliness, and optimism that mark people to

varying degree

• Soft skills complement hard skills, which are the technical requirements

IMPORTANCE OF SOFT SKILLS

• For successful career: soft skill is the ability required and expected from persons

for finding a suitable job, its maintenance and promotion

• To handle interpersonal relations

• To take appropriate decisions

• To communicate effectively

• To have good impression and impact to gain professional development

ESSENTIAL SOFT SKILLS TO BE STRESSED UPON

• COMMUNICATION SKILLS.

• TEAM WORKING SKILLS

• BODY LANGUAGE

• GROOMING

• EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE.

• PROBLEM SOLVING.

• PRESENTATION SKILLS.

• TIME MANAGEMENT.

• LEADERSHIP SKILLS.

• BUSINESS ETHICS.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS.

• EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION IS A TWO WAY PROCESS – SENDING THE RIGHT MESSAGE AND

TO THE RIGHT PERSON.

• “EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION IS THE COMMUNICATION WHICH PRODUCES INTENDED OR

DESIRED RESULT”

BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION

•The use of jargon. .•Emotional barriers and taboos. Lack of attention, interest, distractions, or irrelevance to the receiver.•Differences in perception and viewpoint.•Physical disabilities such as hearing problems or speech difficulties.•Physical barriers to non-verbal communication. Language differences and the difficulty in understanding unfamiliar accents.•Expectations and prejudices which may lead to false assumptions or stereotyping. .•Cultural differences.

EXAMPLES OF COMMUNICATION

DO’S AND DON'TS OF COMMUNICATION

DO’S DON’TS

• Do Be Clear & Direct

• Do Paraphrase

• Do Be Respectful

• Do Tailor Conversation

to Audience

• Do Face-To-Face

• Don’t Give More

Attention To Cell

Phones Than People

• Don’t Overuse

Abbreviations

• Don’t Overuse

Abbreviations

• Don’t React Or Get

Upset

• Don’t Interrupt

COMMUNICATION-EFFECTIVE LISTENING

2

3

4

5

6

1Ask clarifying

questions

Avoid interrupting

Provide positive

verbal and non-verbal

feedback

Adopt a non-

judgmental, accepting

attitude

Pay attention and

respect time limits

Paraphrase the

speaker’s statements

TEAMWORK SKILLS

Shaper – drives work forward and gets things done, has a clear idea of

the desired direction of travel

Completer-Finisher – focuses on completing tasks, and

tidying up all the loose ends

Resource Investigator – gathers external resources and information

to help the team;

Monitor-Evaluator – good at critically assessing ideas and proposals, and at making decisions

Coordinator – manage the group dynamics, often in a leadership

role

Implementer – also gets things done, looking for ways to turn talk into

action and generate practical activity

BODYLANGUAGE SKILLS

• Body language is controlled by your subconscious mind, so a

reader can actually understand if there’s a difference in what

we are saying and thinking.

• Points to remember: never be up tied or stiff while making

movements.

• Avoid body language that may be misunderstood or look

unprofessional. E.G. Winking

• A consistent eye contact is a positive sign and must be used

• Avoid fiddling with things around. It may distract the attention

• Each body part movement signifies something and helps in

interpreting. E.G. Standing with hands on hips signifies

aggressions, nodding signifies agreement and active listening,

biting nails signifies nervousness.

• Unlike emails, body language does not give time to think.

Hence they must be used appropriately.

POSITIVE BODY LANGUAGE

• Posture: the way a person stands or sits is his

posture. It is good to adopt a flexible erect posture

rather than a stiff or slouching posture. An erect

posture reveals confidence and poise. Drooping

shoulders, sagging in the seat, etc., Reveal a feeling

of depression and lack of interest.

• Handshake : shake hands firmly

• HEAD MOTION : NODDING HEAD IS A POSITIVE

GESTURE. NO ONE IS EXPECTED TO KEEP ON

SHAKING HIS HEAD, BUT APPROPRIATE NODS

AND SHAKES OF THE HEAD ENHANCE THE LEVEL

OF COMMUNICATION.

• EYE CONTACT: THE SPEAKER AND LISTENER

SHOULD NOT ONLY FACE EACH OTHER BUT ALSO

MAINTAIN CORRECT AND STEADY EYE CONTACT.

FACIAL EXPRESSION: HAVING A PLEASANT FACE ENHANCES POSITIVITY

GESTURES:

• Emphasizing words with your hands can lead you to appear

more credible and assured.

• Continuous gestures should be avoid

• Be pleasant

• Stop your work or shut your book if someone has something to

talk to you.

• Smile, which does not bare your teeth, shows that you are in a

reflective mood and are amused at your mussings.

• Touching or slightly rubbing the nose, usually with the index

finger shows you are in doubt. It can even symbolize an

attempt to hide reality.

• Tugging at ear is a gesture when one wants to be a good

listener.

• TAKING NOTES. Taking notes lets others know that you value what

they are saying and that you are engaged in the

conversation. Taking notes is not appropriate though in every

situation.

• SLOWER. Take a deep breath, hold it for a second or two, and let it

out. Focus on slowing down your speech and body movements a

bit. This will make you appear more confident and contemplative. It

will also help calm you down if you are nervous.

• VOICE AND TONE: Volume of voice (pleasant,audible volume)

Tone of voice (confident, assuring tone)

Modulate voice(avoid high pitch)

“There are four ways, and only four ways, in which we have contact with the world. We are evaluated and

classified by these four contacts: what we do, how we look, what we say, and how we say it.” Dale carnegie

• SPACE: In oral communication situations, the space between the speaker and the listener is

important. A person who comes very close while speaking, say, less than two feet is invading into

his privacy

• SILENCE In oral communication situations, silence plays an important role. People quite often talk

about “eloquent silence”. Silence in a particular situation may mean acceptance, agreement and

in certain others indifference, apathy or even anger.

NEGATIVE BODY LANGUAGE

NO’S

Checking the time: Looking at

a timepiece signals that you

do not want to be there and

that you have more important

things to be doing.

Over blinking. Blinking is normal but over blinking is usually a

sign of anxiety and

nervousness. Practice your blinking

habits while looking at yourself in the

mirror.

Fake smile. People know

when you are faking a smile so do not even bother trying. A

true smile comes from more than just

your mouth. It can be seen in your

entire face including your eyes.

Tapping. Do not tap; it is

simple. Tapping your

fingers, feet, or even a

pen indicates stress or

impatience.

Touching your face. Everyone

has a little itch they need to

scratch now and again but

repeatedly touching your face

while speaking with someone is

an indication that you are lying.

Looking somewhere

else This tells people that

you are shy or

disinterested.

GROOMING: IT IS THE PROCESS OF MAKING YOURSELF LOOK NEAT AND ATTRACTIVE. THE THINGS WHICH YOU DO TO MAKE YOURSELF AND YOUR

APPEARANCE TIDY AND PLEASANT.

DO’S AND DON’TS FOR WOMENTYPE DO,S DON’TS

CLOTHES Wear basic colours that

should fit and ironed

Don’t wear dark

coloured ,transparent

and wrinkled clothes

Earrings Gold, silver, diamond or

pearl ,one per ear

Dangling, large or

multiple

Necklaces Pearl, gold or silver Crafts

Makeup light heavy

Rings One ring per hand Thumb rings

Hair

accessories

Simple and same colour

of the hair

Shiny and dangling

Purses Black or brown polished

leather usually black or

dark brown

Satin or straw, fringed,

loud prints

watch Gold or stainless steel

metal link band in

proportion to the body

structure

Cloth, plastic,bright

colours

Shoes High sheen

leather,black or navy

classic heels(1.5 to 3

inch)

High heels

DON’TS FOR MEN

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE SKILLS: Emotional intelligence is the measure of an individual’s abilities to recognize and manage their

emotions, and the emotions of other people, both individually and in groups.

Self regulation

Empathy

Social skills

Motivation

Superior performance and decision

making

Self awareness

SELF AWARENESS

• Self awareness: self- Awareness is the skill of being aware of and

understanding your emotions as they occur and as they evolve. It is

wrong to think of emotions as either positive or negative. Instead,

you should think of them as appropriate or inappropriate.

• It encompasses:

Emotional awareness Accurate self-assessment Self-confidence

• For example, anger is usually associated with being a negative emotion. Emotional intelligence allows us to recognize our anger and understand why this emotion has occurred.

• Effective self-assessment of feelings and emotions will help to improve your confidence and self-esteem.

SELF REGULATION• Self-management skills relate to the emotions you are feeling at any

given time or in any given circumstance and how well you manage

them. Self-control is a fundamental part of this, but other aspects

relate to what you then do: whether you behave in a way which is

recognised as ‘good’ or ‘virtuous’ or not.

• Having learned to be aware of your emotions, the skill of self-

regulation relates to managing them appropriately and

proportionately.

• It includes

Self-control. Managing disruptive impulses.

Trustworthiness. Maintaining standards of honesty and integrity.

Conscientiousness. Taking responsibility for your own performance.

Adaptability. Handling change with flexibility.

Innovation. Being open to new ideas.

EMPATHY

• The ability to recognize how people feel is important to

success in your life and career. The more skillful you are

at discerning the feelings behind others’ signals the better

you can control the signals you send them

• Empathy helps us to develop a stronger understanding of

other people’s situations.

• It includes understanding others, developing others, having a

service orientation, leveraging diversity, and political

awareness.

• Empathy can often be difficult to achieve. Learn to listen

effectively to both the verbal and non-verbal messages of

others, including body movements, gestures and physical

signs of emotion.

• Use questions to find out more about other people and what

they are feeling, and feedback to clarify that you have

correctly understood their feelings.

• Acknowledge and respect the feelings of others even if you

disagree, and avoid making comments or statements that are

judgemental, belittling, rejecting or undermining.

SOCIAL SKILLS: People skills” are even more important now because you must possess a high

EQ to better understand, empathize and negotiate with others in a global economy. Among the most useful skills are:

Wielding effective persuasion tactics.

Sending clear messages. Inspiring and guiding groups and people.Initiating or managing change.

Understanding, negotiating and resolving disagreements.

Building bonds. Nurturing

instrumental relationships.

Building bonds. Nurturing

instrumtal relationships.

rturing instrumental

relationships.

MOTIVATION• To motivate yourself for any achievement requires clear goals and

a positive attitude. Although you may have a predisposition to

either a positive or a negative attitude, you can with effort and

practice learn to think more positively. If you catch negative

thoughts as they occur, you can reframe them in more positive terms

— which will help you achieve your goals. Motivation is made up

of

• Achievement drive. Your constant striving to improve or to meet a

standard of excellence.

• Commitment. Aligning with the goals of the group or organization.

• Initiative. Readying yourself to act on opportunities.

• Optimism. Pursuing goals persistently despite obstacles and

setbacks.

PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLSAny job will also bring problems to be faced. It is important to show to a recruiter that you have the right skills to resolve these problems, and the personal resilience to handle the challenges

and pressure they may bring.

• Developing your analytical and problem-solving skills:

Develop interest in following fields may enhance ideas for problem

solving in some fields like,it,architecture,engineering,finance

• Mind games’ such as cryptic crosswords, sudoku, chess, bridge, etc;

• Computer games – the best of these can involve strategic planning,

critical and statistical analysis and assessing the pros and cons of

different courses of action;

• ‘Practical’ interests such as programming, computer repairs, car

maintenance, or DIY;

• Working with sound or lighting equipment for a band, event or show;

• Academic study: evaluating different sources of information for essays,

designing and constructing a ‘microshelter’ for an architecture project;

setting up a lab experiment.

IDEAL WAY OF PROBLEM SOLVING

SOME STEPS ARE FUNDAMENTAL:

•IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM•DEFINE THE PROBLEM•EXAMINE THE OPTIONS•ACT ON A PLAN•LOOK AT THE CONSEQUENCES

PRESENTATION SKILLS: Presentation is very important while facing an interview or in professional

life,we may be asked to prepare a presentation pf 5 to 20 minutes.The basic tips before a presentation are:

• Practice: try to practice where you'll be delivering your talk. Some

acting strategists suggest rehearsing lines in various positions – standing

up, sitting down, with arms open wide, on one leg,or infront of a mirror.

• Dress smartly: don't let your appearance distract from what you are

saying.

• Arrive early: it's always best to allow yourself plenty of time to settle

in before your talk and adapt in the environment

• Speak clearly, firmly and confidently as this makes you sound in

control. Don't speak too quickly: you are likely to speed up and raise

the pitch of your voice when nervous. Give the audience time to absorb

each point.

• Say hello and smile when you greet the audience: your audience will

probably look at you and smile back: an instinctive reaction.

PRESENTATION SKILLS• Transform nervous energy into enthusiasm:make sure that you are

enthusiastic and energetic before a presentation as an enthusiastic

speech win over an eloquent one,if required listen some energetic

music to drive yourself.

• Use positive visualization: instead of thinking "i'm going to be

terrible out there" and visualizing yourself throwing up mid-

presentation, imagine yourself getting tons of laughs while presenting

with the enthusiasm, positive thoughts can be incredibly effective

• Keep within the allotted time for your talk: take along a wristwatch

to help you keep track of time

• Don’t read ,make an eye contact with the audience: look at

everyone in the audience from time to time, not just at your notes or

at the powerpoint slides. Don't read out your talk, as this sounds

boring and stilted, but refer to brief notes jotted down on small

(postcard sized) pieces of card

PRESENTATION SKILLS

• Work on your pauses :don't be afraid to slow down and use pauses

in your speech. Pausing can be used to emphasize certain points and

to help your talk feel more conversational. If you feel yourself losing

control of your pacing, just take a nice pause

• Don’t load the information:presentations should be full of useful,

insightful, and actionable information, knowing what to include, and

what to leave out, is crucial to the success of a good presentation. If it

feels too off-topic, or is only marginally relevant to your main points,

leave it out.

• Be entertaining and actively engage the audience: including some

jokes and light-hearted slides is a great way to help the audience

feel more comfortable. Asking the audience what they think, inviting

questions, and other means of welcoming audience participation can

boost engagement and make attendees feel like a part of a

conversation.

PRESENTATION SKILLS• DRINK WATER: DRY MOUTH IS A COMMON RESULT OF ANXIETY. PREVENT

COTTONMOUTH BLUES BY STAYING HYDRATED AND DRINKING PLENTY OF

WATER BEFORE YOUR TALK KEEP A BOTTLE OF WATER AT ARM'S REACH

WHILE PRESENTING IN CASE YOU GET DRY MOUTH WHILE CHATTING UP A

STORM.

• DON'T FIGHT THE FEAR:ACCEPT YOUR FEAR RATHER THAN TRYING TO

FIGHT IT. GETTING YOURSELF WORKED UP BY WONDERING IF PEOPLE WILL

NOTICE YOUR NERVOUSNESS WILL ONLY INTENSIFY YOUR ANXIETY.

• STRUCTURE YOUR PRESENTATION WITH AN INTRODUCTION, BODY AND

CONCLUSION. IN AN INTRODUCTION BRIEF ABOUT THE AIMS AND

OBJECTIVES, COVER THE STORY IN THE MIDDLE AND SUMMARIZE THE

PRESENTATION IN THE END

• ADMIT YOU DON’T HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS:WE ALL KNOW THAT

NOBODY CAN EVER KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT A GIVEN TOPIC,

ADMITTING SO IN A PRESENTATION CAN ACTUALLY IMPROVE YOUR

CREDIBILITY.

TIME MANAGEMENT SKILLS: ONCE WE HAVE IDENTIFIED WAYS IN WHICH WE

CAN IMPROVE THE MANAGEMENT OF OUR TIME, WE CAN BEGIN TO ADJUST OUR ROUTINES AND PATTERNS OF BEHAVIOUR TO REDUCE ANY TIME-RELATED STRESS IN OUR

LIVES.

Prioritize,do urgent

and important tasks

first and make a

things to do list

Organize work ,Set

up goals to meet

deadlines

Stop multi tasking

and share your work

Refresh mind by

taking regular

breaks that hastens

the woork

Develop habit to do

the tasks at the same

time, day and place

Persistence in doing something

despite difficulty or delay ,never

give up,take positive attitude

from failure,learn from mistake

Avoid Procrastination, the

best time to do a task is

now, reward yourself for

achieving goal

Break down tasks

so that you can

accomplish one at

a time

LEADERSHIP SKILLS:

LEADERSHIP IS LIFTING A PERSON’S PERFORMANCE TO A HIGHER STANDARD,

THE BUILDING OF A PERSONALITY BEYOND HIS NORMAL LIMITATIONS

• Learn to think more critically

• Do more to enthuse your team

• Make your goals and future vision attractive and attainable

• Learn to communicate clearly

• Improve your speaking skills

• Organize and allocate workflow

• Make sure work is done correctly and on time

• Find better ways to do things

• Encourage progress and recognize efforts

• Try to match individual skills and work build team spirit

• Encourage people to work cooperatively

• Recognize success and learn from failure

• Trust your subordinates

BUSINESS ETHICS :ACTING IN AN ETHICAL WAY INVOLVES

DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN “RIGHT” AND “WRONG” AND THEN MAKING THE “RIGHT” CHOICE.

• Be trustful: when you've got someone's trust it's great: you can sell them more stuff, get

more favors, ask for more, and generally benefit a great deal.

• Keep an open mind: open-mindedness is equated with positivity and growth. It helps us

to take risks, find opportunities, understand others, and manage uncertainty.

• Meet obligations :regardless of the circumstances, do everything in your power to gain

the trust of past customer's and clients, particularly if something has gone awry. Reclaim

any lost business by honoring all commitments and obligations

• Have clear documents: re-evaluate all print materials including small business

advertising, brochures, and other business documents making sure they are clear,

precise and professional. Most important, make sure they do not misrepresent or

misinterpret.

• Become community involved: remain involved in community-related issues and

activities, thereby demonstrating that your business is a responsible community

contributor. In other words, stay involved.

• Maintain accounting control: gaining control of accounting and record keeping

allows you to end any dubious activities promptly.

• Be respectful: regardless of differences, positions, titles, ages, or other types of

distinctions, always treat others with professional respect and courtesy.

GOOD SOFT SKILLS: RANK YOURSELFWHICH ARE IN FACT SCARCE – IN THE HIGHLY COMPETITIVE CORPORATE WORLD WILL HELP YOU TO “ STAND OUT ” IN A CROWD OF ROUTINE JOB SEEKERS AND

MEDIOCRE SKILLS AND TALENT.

1. Good attitude :it is a behavioral skill which cannot be taught. However it can be developed through continuous

training.

2. You must be ready to solve problems and create “win-win” situations.

3. Must be able to take “ownership”

4. Workforce profile: there are “60 soft skills” that employers look for when looking for new employee.

5. Courtesy: polite, considerate behavior, good manners

6. Good attendance: presence at event or institution ,report to work on a regular basis (every day)

7. Honesty: moral uprightness – the quality, condition, or characteristic of being fair, just, truthful, and morally

upright.

8. Eye contact : act of looking directly into the eyes of another person.

9. Flexibility the ability to adapt to new situations the ability to change or be changed according to circumstances.

10. Good work history -time spent at a place of employment show your loyalty or longevity to an organization.

11. Common sense-good judgment sound practical judgment derived from “experience” rather than a study.

GOOD SOFT SKILLS:12. Willingness to be accountable responsible able to be explained

13. Positive work ethic belief in the moral value of work A dedication to work, or belief in the moral value of hard

work.

14. Report to work on time arriving to work at a designated time everyday.

15. Good personal appearance visual aspect of a person – with regards to personal cleanness and neatness of clothing

16. Basic spelling and grammar ability to spell correctly forming words by ordering letters rules for language – the

system of rules by which words are formed and put together to make sentences.

17. Willingness to learn come to know something – to acquire knowledge of a subject or skill through education or

experience. Find out something memorize something

18. Ability to relate to coworkers in a close environment having connection with something connection with people or

things form friendly association – to have a relationship with a friendly feeling toward somebody.

19. Willingness to be a good worker and go beyond the traditional “8” hour day A person who will go the “ extra mile

” when the time arise. A person who will stay late and do “ over-time ” when need be.

20 Communication skills with public, fellow employees, supervisors, and customers exchange of information – by

speaking, writing, or using common system of signs or behavior rapport – a sense of mutual understanding and

sympathy.

Documents

Certificate in Soft Skill and IT Skillegyanagar.osou.ac.in/slmfiles/SoftSkill-3.pdf · Certificate in Soft Skill and IT Skill ... Dr. Kameshwari Moorty ... their relationship with